Preservation of water resources and their proper utilisation

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With increasing demand of water, the availability of water is diminishing due to ever increasing population, construction activities and wasteful use of water. Due to ever increasing population and demand of land for residential purposes and development activities is ever increasing. Now the land of natural drainage channels is in danger, because it does not owned by a particular village or city or person. Unauthorized use of land of natural drainage channels like rivers, their tributaries etc. , village ponds and small rivers is causing obstruction in normal natural flow of water in them. The bridges across natural drainage channels are of small capacity as compared to the channel capacity at that particular portion or are not provided at all. The following measures may help to protect natural water channels like rivers etc. from unauthorised occupation and ensure normal natural flow in them and also protection of village ponds and artificial water reservoirs.

  1. All land shown as drainage channels like nalla, rivers, tributaries etc.  as on 1.1.1950 should be declared as Govt. land . Any conversions made after 1.1.1950 should be declared illegal. The relevant act and rules must be amended accordingly.
  2. Demarcation of catchment areas  should be done by constructing pillars at suitable spacing depending upon size of the catchment area with the help of GT sheet of scale 1:25,000 or 1:50,000 and/or  “Water Shed Atlas of Rajasthan”  prepared by the State Remote Sensing Application Centre, Jodhpur
  3. Demarcation of drainage channels

(i) In unhabitated areas this can be done by installing pillars at suitable spacing or by constructing side wall depending upon size of drainage channel and its importance.

(ii) In urban and rural areas, the demarcation of drainage channels must essentially be done by constructing side walls of appropriate height and thickness.

  1. In the government owned lakes and other water bodies, the  Khatedari rights  of private persons in their submergence area should be brought under the ownership of the government.
  2. Engineering professionals and Patwaries should be inspected the drainage channels in the catchment areas. Wherever there are obstructions in nalla, it should be suitably removed by constructing culverts, deepening and widening of nallas etc.
  3. Wherever there are any construction activities, which may interfere with the flow of water in the drainage channels, no objection certificate must be obtained from the Irrigation Department.
  4. The Anicuts more than 2 m height above deepest nalla bed should be identified. The height more than 2 m should be  dismantled .
  5. Wherever residential colonies have been constructed obstructing flow in drainage channels, the  obstruction must be removed  and nallas may be deepened /constructed.
  6. On the periphery of lakes, ponds, water bodies in urban and rural areas, a pucca drain  should be constructed on periphery of the water body to prevent entry of domestic, industrial and other waste in the water body.
  7. For soil conservation work, suitable guidelines must be issued by the “Watershed & Soil Conservation Department” so that these works make minimum possible interference with the flow of water.
  8. The district administration should specify  places for dumping various types of waste material.  If any body is found to dump the waste material in other places, particularly drainage channels, then suitable punishment should be provided in the law.
  9. The government should use television, radio and newspapers to  create awareness  in this matter.
  10. Possibility should be explored  to use marble slurry as construction material , for filling depressions etc as has been done for disposal of fly ash from Thermal Power Houses.
  11. The  water quality  of water bodies should regularly be monitored.
  12. Wherever over-burden or waste materials generated from mines and processing units, have been dumped obstructing flow of water in drainage channels;  diversion drains and check walls  must be constructed. For that purpose special condition should be incorporated in the lease /license agreement.

 

 

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